.4 Gender Issues and Personal
Responsibility

We have already talked about the fact that there should be male responsibility for women's issues, that males have the responsibility to model appropriate behavior towards women, that males have the responsibility for both gaining information and sharing it, and the responsibility for giving females support in women's consciousness, while still intervening when inappropriate action or behavior takes place. For example, one of the things that is very hard for men to get used to is to refuse to listen to a sexist joke. There are a many sexist jokes still out there, and when you sit and listen to a sexist joke without challenging it, you are supporting that sexism. That is a standard that is beyond most of us at this time because most of us do not want to take the activist's position of intervening. My own position is that I choose to intervene selectively. If one of my friends is in the habit of telling one sexist joke after another, then at some point I will tell them that I really don't appreciate it. But I probably won't challenge them one on one. I don't know if that is the right way to do it, but it's the way I choose to act during this time of transition.

It is obvious that gender issues are here. I compliment society as a group because we have shown a higher level of sensitivity in terms of accepting that this is everyb0dy's agenda to deal with. That in fact there is legitimacy in men getting involved with women's issues, or that there is legitimacy in terms of focusing attention.

I also compliment society for wanting to make sure that focusing attention on gender issues does not become a way of producing another kind of separatism. We somehow have to escape from the notion that paying attention to cultural and multicultural issues is negative. This is a part of a necessary process. Eventually, if we handle issues of stereotype and gender properly, we should achieve a common goal of a more balanced society. Then it not be necessary to focus on gender equality because such equality will be a comfortable reality.

	If sterotype and genser issuses re properly handled, what goal should we achieve?	Answer Here
	Mrs. Smith teaches a class that is made up of predominately male students. How can she teach them to be courteous to the female students in her class without making them think that they are superior to the females in the class?	Answer Here